Are These Girls' Dresses Inappropriate?

With prom season almost here, a California high school has earned attention for its dress code.

Students in Orange County, CA, have called Capistrano Valley High's policies a "repressed code," after 40 girls were subjected to wardrobe inspections before being admitted to a recent dance. 

"There were these girls who have beautiful bodies, who are happy with their bodies—to have the principal ask what part of your body isn't the dress tight on, he makes me feel insecure," said senior Lindsay Kamikawa, editor of the school newspaper, who was among the girls prohibited from entering the dance. "I think that my principal has the best intentions when he was enforcing the dress code. I think that perhaps he didn't consider the position of a teenage girl who has a blossoming confidence."

No male students were subject to the same kind of scrutiny, Kamikawa noted. She argued that terms such as "too tight" are subjective, she said, and dresses deemed too short on one girl might be allowed on another girl.

Before the Feb. 1 winter formal, the school's principal modified the dress code, prohibiting strapless dresses and "stretchy tight skirts/dresses ... (lycra, spandex, etc.).”

The senior said Capo is the only high school in the district to ban strapless dresses. And, she added, the school overstepped reasonable boundaries in enforcing the code.

Click through the above photos to see photos of girls who were barred from the dance because of their dresses. Do you think the girls are dressed inappropriately for a school dance? What would you think of a similar policy in your school district?